Portugal’s Hi Fly transfers only A330-200 to Maltese AOC

Hi Fly (5K, Beja) has transferred its only A330-200 to Hi Fly Malta (HFM, Malta Int’l), ch-aviation research has revealed.

CS-TQP (msn 211) was re-registered as 9H-TQP on January 7 and operated a test flight around Beja under its new registration on January 8, 2022, Flightradar24 ADS-B data shows. It has yet, however, to begin operating revenue flights under the Maltese AOC.

The A330’s transfer follows the recent re-registration of Hi Fly’s last A340-300 in Malta and further reduces the Portuguese carrier’s already diminished fleet. While before the COVID-19 pandemic, Hi Fly tended to have a roughly balanced number of aircraft registered on both of its AOCs, currently, the distribution is heavily skewed towards the Maltese unit, which now operates one A319-100, one A321-200, the A330-200, three A330-300s, one A330-900, and six A340-300s. In turn, its Portuguese sister carrier operates just one A321 and one A330-900, the ch-aviation fleets advanced module shows.

Hi Fly did not respond to ch-aviation’s inquiry as to whether it will transfer the Portuguese AOC’s remaining aircraft to its Maltese unit.